What You Need to Know About Outdoor Wood Burners
Outdoor wood burners are an economical solution to heat homes and businesses. They also reduce dependence on nonrenewable fossils fuels and help in implementing a sustainable energy strategy.
To ensure efficient burning, it is important to use well-seasoned wood. Wood that is not seasoned or green has higher moisture content and can cause creosote accumulation, which can affect performance.
Efficient
Outdoor wood burners have been around for many years. They are an energy efficient and environmentally friendly way of heating your home. However, the standard design of OWBs, which promotes the slow and cooler burning that causes poor combustion and more smoke, creosote, as well as particulates. These unburnt fuels can cause health issues, fire hazards, and cause harm to the environment around it.
Furthermore, the visible smoke plume produced by OWBs could cause neighbors to voice their concerns and lead to DEC (Department of Environmental Conservation) enforcement actions. This kind of public relations issue could be a significant impact on the value of your property and could even result in your OWB being shut down.
Crown Royal Stoves has a line of outdoor wood furnaces that are EPA Certified. the full details makes use of technology to increase the efficiency of combustion and produce an unburned, clean and smoke-free. This is achieved through an air system that is negative pressure that draws fresh, dry, hot, filtered air in from the bottom of the boiler and pushes it out through the chimney at a much more rapid rate than traditional outdoor wood boilers. This is achieved through the unique design of a multi-pass, water-filled heat exchanger constructed from 409 Titanium Enhanced Stainless Steel.
When used properly, the Pristine Gasification Series OWB can achieve an efficiency of 99% for a cleaner, smokeless fire that uses less wood and produces significantly less emissions than traditional OWBs. It is essential to burn only dry, clean and seasoned wood in order to maximize the performance of your OWB. It is recommended that you prepare your wood for a period of six months or a year before burning it. This will result in a more efficient and cleaner burn.
In addition to improving the efficiency of your wood burner, you can also improve its efficiency by performing an "dry burn" every week. This technique eliminates creosote accumulation, makes your boiler running efficiently and increases its lifespan. Lastly by adding a creosote-removing stick each time you load your stove, you will be able to dramatically reduce the amount of creosote used. This product is available from Wisconsin Wood Furnace.
Clean
The soot particles left in the aftermath of burning wood can make a stove appear very dirty. These are very hard to remove so if you notice any areas of build up on the glass of your stove, wash them right away. If not, the soot will begin to become harder and more difficult to get rid of. It is essential to select the right cleaners however, you must be careful not to scratch the glass with anything that may scratch it. This could leave a weak spot that could shatter the glass when it's exposed to extreme temperatures.
Make sure you let your wood burner cool completely before cleaning it. Also, ensure that the surrounding area is covered with newspaper. This will prevent any spillage of ash which could stain and mark surfaces.
It could take up to one year for the seasoning process of your stove to be completed, based on the quality of wood you choose to use. Seasoned wood will not only burn more efficiently, but will create less creosote. This is the kind of material that builds up on your chimney, reducing effectiveness and creating the risk of fire. If you're using unseasoned wood, or just beginning a new fire in your outdoor wood burner the best thing to do is open the back door to the lower part and scoop the ashes into a non-combustible container each week.
You should also perform a sediment flush on your boiler at least every four years. It is a simple flush that takes five seconds from the bottom drain valve on your boiler. This will get rid of any debris that has accumulated inside the system, and will keep your boiler in great operating condition.
Once you've completed the sediment flush, it's now time to clean the exterior of your outdoor wood burner. Before you begin, make sure to cover the area around the stove with newspaper. Wearing gloves and eye protection is also a good idea. Also, you should have a metal ash canister as well as a scraping tool and shovel. To safeguard the refractory, you must lay a cloth on it to protect it while you scrape away coal and ash deposits.
Simple to operate
Despite their popularity (they were one of the 1990s' "it" trends, together with mullet hairstyles) outdoor wood boilers, also known as outdoor furnaces or outdoor wood hydronic heaters, are often misunderstood. These units are different from the popular EPA wood stoves, which are built to burn at low temperatures continuously. They are able to produce an increased rate of fire and produce more smoke. This is the reason why local governments regulate or even ban their use.
OWBs work best for homes that have high levels of insulation. The smoldering, visible smoke can also be a source of complaints from neighbors, and has led to many OWBs being shut-down or being sued in the past. For OWBs dry wood with less moisture content is required to perform properly. Utilizing unseasoned or green wood can reduce efficiency, cause creosote accumulation and can cut down the life of the burner. Drying wood takes time and the use of a moisture gauge is essential for every homeowner.
In contrast, dual-stage wood gasification boilers (OWGB) make use of a three step process that uses more of the available energy from the wood and results in less smoke. These types of furnaces are far more efficient than traditional OWBs and can be used with a greater variety of fuel. Wood gasification boilers require dry well-seasoned wood. The majority of wood will mature over the course of a year. Oak and other tough trees could take as long as two years to mature. They are less watery and have a denser mass. This allows them retain heat for longer, thereby increasing efficiency and reducing pollution. The EPA's "Burn Wise" website and Cornell Cooperative Extension can help homeowners understand how to burn wood efficiently to minimize pollution to the air.
Low Maintenance
Modern outdoor wood stoves are designed to be eco-friendly. Modern outdoor wood furnaces don't generate excessive heat or CO2. They also burn more efficiently than indoor wood stoves. They also require less wood to generate the same amount of heat as traditional stoves.
Outdoor wood burners require less maintenance and are more tolerant of moisture content in wood than wood burning stoves that are indoor. Outdoor wood burners are only suitable for wood that has been properly "cured" or dried or. This could take a whole year or more for some kinds of wood. Use a moisture meter before loading to measure the amount of water present in the wood.
In the course of operation, it is crucial to inspect the system periodically to check for accumulation of creosote. Creosote is a by-product of combustion, may build up in the flue and chimney if they are not cleaned regularly. It can be removed by pouring a creosote-removing product into the fire. Regular cleaning of the chimney and flue will remove dangerous creosote and increase efficiency.
Crown Royal Stoves developed a new airflow technology known as Negative Pressure Gasification to ensure 99% efficiency in combustion. Our EPA certified Pristine Series outdoor wood furnaces utilize this technology to pull air from the bottom, pushing all the gasses into an insulated water-surrounded secondary combustion chamber, which is easy-clean turbulators for a smokeless & pollution free burn.